


LA, Circa 1948

by javajunkie



Category: Agents of SHIELD - Fandom
Genre: Adventure, Espionage, F/M, Romance, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:48:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25477189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/javajunkie/pseuds/javajunkie
Summary: Daisy travels back in time to recover a file from the SSR Headquarters in LA.  Daisy/Sousa(Written based on a prompt by "thesecretlyevilhufflepuff" on Tumblr!)
Relationships: Daisy Johnson x Daniel Sousa
Comments: 16
Kudos: 194





	LA, Circa 1948

“This is a terrible idea.”

Daisy looked over at Daniel, not too much of a fan of his current contributions to the conversation, and said, “No, it’s not. It’s a great idea. Also, sort of the only viable one we have right now.”

“Then we need to keep thinking.”

“We _have_ been thinking, and all that thinking led us here. How else do you propose we get it?”

“We’ll find another way. There has to be another way that doesn’t involve _time travel_. Haven’t we messed with that enough?”

Daisy sighed and looked over at Simmons. “Please tell him there isn’t any other way.”

Simmons cast Daniel an apologetic look and said, “There really isn’t. We need the designs for the nanoprimer and they were lost to Hydra when SHIELD formed. This is really our best option.”

“To steal them from the SSR headquarters in LA?” Daniel said leadingly. 

“We know that you held them there until SHIELD formed in 1950.”

“How do you expect to even get in there?” Daniel asked.

“Well, lucky for us, we happen to have the former Chief of the LA division on our team,” Daisy said. 

“It’s not that easy. What if you get caught?”

“I’ll talk my way out of it.”

“Like you did when we met?” Daniel said, the tone of his voice clearly indicating that he didn’t like Daisy’s odds if she was caught in the same predicament. 

“I’ll admit, not my best moment,” Daisy relented. “But, that was breaking into an entire military base. This will be much easier.”

“Oh sure, just breaking into one of the SSR’s mainposts,” Daniel said. “Not a large undertaking at all.”

Daisy could see that he wasn’t about to budge, but frankly, neither was she. Crossing her arms over her chest, she said, “Look, I’m going in with or without your help.”

His eyes met her, waiting out her bluff, and when it didn’t come, he exhaled sharply and said, “You’re really doing this?”

“Yes, I really am.”

Daisy could see the tension in him, his jaw clicking, before he said, “Fine, I’ll help you.”

“Thank you, we-“

“But, I’m going with you.”

“No,” Daisy said immediately. “You can’t be there.”

“Daisy’s right,” Simmons said. “You would be in too close proximity with your past self. It could cause a time paradox.”

“Meaning?” Daniel asked.

“Your future self could cease to exist.”

Daniel was quiet, but his shoulders had slackened, the fight out of him. Simmons gently said, “It really will be quite safe for us to travel back then. Fitz and I recalibrated the system and we should be able to jump with no problem.” She paused before adding, “And, Daisy knows what she’s doing.”

“I know that,” Daniel said, casting an apologetic look toward Daisy. “I’ll talk you through how to get into the headquarters. I’ll help in whatever way I can.”

* * *

Daniel talked her through the talent agency and he warned her that Peggy Carter would be there, and if she ran into her, Peggy would be an even more suspicious party than he had been when they first met. He was clearly still not convinced this was the right move, and she said, “I need you to trust me on this.”

“I do trust you,” he said, covering her hand with his. “I just worry.”

“You know, I was a SHIELD agent before I met you, too,” Daisy said, interlacing their fingers. “I can take care of myself.”

He smiled slightly. “I know that. You’re more than capable of taking care of yourself, but, I just don’t want anything to happen where you don’t come back. In my experience, time travel never really goes as planned.”

“That’s not going to happen now. Simmons and Fitz fixed the issues with the time jumps. We’re going to be fine.”

“Good,” he said. “Because I’m not too keen on a future that doesn’t include you.”

She leaned forward and kissed him.

“If everything goes as planned – which it will – we’ll be back before you know it.”

“I’m going to hold you to that,” he said. 

* * *

The next morning, they jumped to the late 1940s, and Daisy got ready for her mission. Daniel was quiet, not wanting to appear unsupportive but also unable to fully get behind what Daisy was planning on doing. It was too risky, and with Simmons’ overtures about the time paradox, if there was trouble, he wouldn’t be able to do anything. Daisy walked over to him before she left and braced her hands on his arms.

“This is going to work,” she said.

“I have something for you,” Daniel said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his wallet. He handed her a silver dollar and said, “I’ve always carried this with me, since I was a kid. Even during the war, I kept it in my shoe. If you get caught, show it to me. I can’t promise it’ll work, but it’s something.” 

Daisy nodded, closing her hand around the silver dollar.

“I’ll see you soon?” he said.

“I’ll see you soon.”

* * *

Daisy approached the Auerbach Talent Agency, an inconspicuous store front that housed one of the most covert branches of the US government. Daniel told her that there was a hidden back entrance, and she began to make her way there when she recognized two people approaching the agency. They were walking slowly, as if trying to stretch out the minutes before they had to disappear back into the day’s work. It was Daniel. Not _her_ Daniel, but the one before. He was wearing brown slacks, a short sleeve button up and a sweater vest. He looked younger, but not by much. Beside him was a striking brunette. Daisy hadn’t gone through the Academy like the others, but it didn’t take much guesswork to recognize her. Peggy Carter. Daniel said something and Peggy laughed, bracing her hand on his arm. Her hand lingered then, thumb brushing along the curve of his bicep. It was an intimate moment, and Daisy couldn’t help the spark of jealousy that came alive in her chest.

“Ma’am?”

Daisy jumped, noticing to her chagrin that she drew the attention of Daniel and Peggy as she greeted the police officer who had stopped beside her. Quickly, she pivoted so that they couldn’t see her face.

“Are you okay?” the officer asked.

“Yes, just looking for the post office. I’m new in town so I still get a little turned around.”

“It’s two blocks that way,” the officer said, pointing to their right.

“Thank you. You’re a total life saver.”

Daisy was still spooked by being spotted by Daniel and Peggy, so she walked a block in the direction of the post office and then doubled back, taking no further detours before approaching the hidden back entrance. It had an elaborate locking system, but with the primer from Daniel, she was able to get it open. Quietly, she slipped in, moving stealthily through the building until she reached the file room, where the nanoprimer designs were supposed to be. It took her a bit to find the right file, but she found it in the back, and she pulled out the design blueprints, folding them and stashing them in a pocket in her jacket.

“You really shouldn’t fold those,” a voice said behind her.

Daisy turned, coming face to face with a tall woman with red hair wound into a tidy bun at the base of her skull. Daisy didn’t recognize the woman, but she had a sense that this wasn’t an SSR agent. The woman smiled, the expression eerily unsettling, and she said, “I’m going to need you to hand me those.”

“Not a chance,” Daisy said.

The woman’s smile didn’t falter before she launched forward with a practiced flurry of kicks and punches that Daisy met with her own. Daisy had her pinned against a file cabinet, and the woman breathed out, “Who are you? You’re _good_.”

An elbow shot back and connected with Daisy’s nose. She staggered back, blood pouring from her nose.

“I’m almost going to be sad to take you out. But, oh well, what’s a girl to do, right?”

The woman descended on her, her foot sweeping Daisy’s legs out from under her. Daisy landed hard on her hip, the cement floor providing little cushion for her fall. The woman snatched the designs and sprinted away, but not before Daisy raised her hand, sending a crushing quake through her opponent. She collapsed immediately, and as Daisy stood and took the designs from her, the woman braced her hands on the ground and murmured, “ _What_ are you?”

Daisy answered by knocking her out, and then she rushed out of the file room, wiping the blood from her face with her coat sleeve. She could sense more commotion in the building – probably due to her using her powers – and she slipped out the back, keeping her head down as she hurried back to Zephyr One. When she got there, Daniel immediately was at her side, taking in her swollen face and the caked blood, and asked, “What the hell happened?”

“Well, we might have been wrong about Hydra taking the designs after SHIELD forms,” Daisy said. “Because, someone was definitely trying to steal it today. And I’m not talking about me.”

Simmons had joined them, and when she saw Daisy’s face, said, “We should check if your nose is broken.”

“Who would have been trying to take it?” Daniel asked with confusion, walking with them to the med-bay. “I was there through all of that. We never had any sort of inkling until after SHIELD.”

“I don’t know, some psycho chick who talked way too much while fighting.”

Daniel stared at her, clearly picking up something in what she said, and Daisy asked him, “What is it?”

“It was a woman?”

Daisy nodded, wincing as Simmons began to clean the blood from around her nose and examine it. 

“Sorry, I’ll be as gentle as I can,” Simmons said.

“It’s okay.”

“What did she look like?” Daniel asked. “The woman you fought?”

“Um, she was a redhead. Tall. Pretty good fighter, actually. Good with her elbows, as you can tell.”

“Dottie Underwood,” Daniel said.

“Dottie who?”

“You fought Dottie Underwood,” Daniel said. “I can’t believe this.”

“I’m sorry, who is Dottie Underwood?” Daisy asked. 

“She was a female assassin. Incredibly well-trained. She escaped the SSR more times than I can count.”

“Well, she’s unconscious in that file room, so, you’re welcome.”

“It doesn’t seem like anything is broken,” Simmons said, straightening up. “I can give you something for the pain, but that’s about it.”

Daisy nodded. “Okay, thanks, Simmons.”

Simmons pulled a vial from one of the cabinets and a syringe, poking the needle into the vial before she approached Daisy and said, “I need you to be very still for this.”

One injection of anesthetic later, Simmons went off to find Fitz, and it was just Daisy and Daniel. He sat next to her on the cot and she put her hand on his good knee, giving it a soft squeeze.

“All things considered, I’d say today went pretty well,” Daisy said.

“I hadn’t even thought about you crossing paths with Dottie Underwood,” Daniel said. “Honestly, I’m sort of glad I didn’t. There was enough to worry about.”

“She wasn’t that bad. She liked my powers.”

Daniel smirked. “I bet she did. So, you run into anyone else I should know about?”

Daisy nodded and said, “Yeah, I did. I saw you, actually.”

His eyes widened with surprise. “You did?”

“And we need to talk about something.” She could feel him grow tense beside her, and she said, “The _sweater vest_.”

Daniel laughed, his body relaxing. “Are you a fan or not?”

“You know, I haven’t decided yet. I feel like I need to see more.”

He slid his arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. “Are you ready to go home?”

Daisy thought about what she had seen in front of the talent agency. It was weird to think that the same man she had seen there was next to her, thumb tracing a circle on her arm as he asked her if she was ready to go home, but here they were. 

“Yeah, let’s go home. And, before I forget...” she reached into her pocket, her breath catching when her fingers closed around nothing. She pulled away from him, checking the pocket again, and then the others, her nerves mounting as her fingers continued to brush against only fabric.

“What is it?” Daniel asked.

“Your silver dollar. It - “ she checked the pocket again, “ - it must have fallen out during my fight with Dottie. _Shit_. Daniel, I am so sorry.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” he said. She continued to check her pockets and he grabbed her hands to stop her. “It’s really okay.”

“But, you carried it with you everywhere.”

“I did,” he said, voice steady. “But, maybe this is a sign that I don’t need to anymore.”

Daisy wasn’t convinced and said, “You’re just saying this to make me feel better, aren’t you?”

Daniel laughed. “Let me put it this way. I’d much rather have you back than the silver dollar.”

“That’s very sweet of you.”

“I can be a pretty sweet guy.”

Daisy leaned forward and kissed him, letting her mouth linger against his until Simmons appeared again and told them, “We’ll be jumping in five minutes.”

Daisy looked up at Daniel and said, “Last chance to run.”

He smirked. “Not a chance.”


End file.
